Kevin Bacon recently shared insights about the impact of Bernie Madoff’s Ponzi scheme on him and his wife, Kyra Sedgwick, during an Esquire interview promoting his new series, The Bondsman. Bacon revealed that since Madoff’s scheme was exposed in 2008, they’ve become "more careful" with investments but not jaded. He reflected on the emotional toll of the experience, comparing the pain of using a gym leg press near Madoff’s former office to the distress they felt after being defrauded. Nonetheless, Bacon emphasized their resilience, focusing on their love for each other and their family as they moved forward.
- Kevin Bacon is reflecting on the influence of Bernie Madoff’s Ponzi scheme on his life and that of his wife, Kyra Sedgwick.
- In a recent interview, Bacon mentioned that he and Sedgwick, who tied the knot in 1988, have become “more cautious” with their investments since the revelation of Madoff’s scheme in 2008.
- Madoff, who passed away in 2021 at the age of 82, received a 150-year prison sentence in June 2009 for perpetrating the largest Ponzi scheme in U.S. history.
Kevin Bacon is sharing insights about his and Kyra Sedgwick’s journey after being affected by Bernie Madoff’s Ponzi scheme.
During an interview with Esquire to promote his new Prime Video series, The Bondsman, published on April 4, Bacon discussed how the financial scandal impacted his family. Madoff was a financier who admitted guilt to multiple felony charges related to fraud and other crimes in 2009.
“There’s really not much to say,” Bacon remarked when asked about discussing Madoff. “If something appears too good to be true, it probably is.” When the interviewer pointed out that he and Sedgwick, aged 59, don’t seem “too jaded by the experience,” he replied, “No, not jaded. Just more careful. But not jaded.”
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“I go to a gym that has just a few machines and typically only a handful of people at a time. It’s quite basic without showers,” he shared. “But there’s a leg press machine. A leg press can be intense. . . The machine is positioned right next to a window, and when I look outside, I see the building where Madoff operated.”
Bacon compared the “excruciating discomfort” he experiences while using the leg press and gazing at the building of Madoff’s company, Bernard L. Madoff Investment Securities, to the feelings he had when he and Sedgwick discovered they had fallen victim to the Ponzi scheme, valued at approximately $64.8 billion.
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“It’s ironic, because I also have to remind myself that I can get through this. And that’s how we felt about Madoff,” he reflected. “It was terrible, and we were understandably upset, but we woke up the next day and thought, ‘What do we still have? We love each other, we love our kids, we’re healthy. No one took away our ability to earn a living.’ So we got back to work.”
Madoff died in prison in April 2021 at the age of 82 while serving a 150-year sentence that started in July 2009. At the time of Madoff’s death, PEOPLE reported that filmmaker Steven Spielberg was among many notable Hollywood figures who were affected by the massive scheme.
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Bacon has previously discussed the effects of the Ponzi scheme on him and Sedgwick, revealing during a 2022 appearance on the SmartLess podcast that they “had most of our money invested with Madoff,” though he did not specify an exact amount.
“There are clear life lessons here — if something seems too good to be true, it typically is,” he noted at the time.
Bacon’s series The Bondsman is currently available for streaming on Prime Video.